Will it cause confusion?

[NotEasy]

I have a new client who is a married couple this year.

I have prepared their 2012 tax return based on the conventional way, husband comes first as the taxpayer and wife as the spouse on the tax return.

But now I found out actually they had the wife came first as the taxpayer and husband as the spouse in their last year tax return.

So if I switch their position this year, will it cause confusion in any way?

[mastertaxguy]

Conventional way?

Might bother the taxpayers.

Curious: did you get a copy of last year's return?

Did you ask the taxpayers if they had a preference?

[NotEasy]

Well, I have switched their name back already. So now wife as taxpayer and husband as spouse. It was not as difficult as I thought, only took a few minutes.

So it is in the same order as the previous year now.

[ChEAr$]

Still, a previous question above asks did you get a copy of previous year's tax return?

Even up to this year when I was accepting new clients, I always must have the previous year's return to insure
consistency of treatment of various items. For example if prevoius year had a schedule c, depreciation on it, we need to know if any section 179 might have to be recaptured. Back in 2010 instead of going back to previous preparer who knew of the 7,500 FTHBC, people would find a new preparer and not tell them about that little item.

and btw, that's a good way to week out any IRS agents who are out "shopping", if you know what I mean.

[joanmcq]

I've heard that once one person is filed as 'taxpayer' and the other as 'spouse' that you should keep those designations to not confuse the IRS computers. this is just hearsay, but it makes sense to me, and I follow the practice.

[AZ-Tax]

Agee w/CheEA$

Still, a previous question above asks did you get a copy of previous year's tax return?

Even up to this year when I was accepting new clients, I always must have the previous year's return to insure
consistency of treatment of various items. For example if prevoius year had a schedule c, depreciation on it, we need to know if any section 179 might have to be recaptured. Back in 2010 instead of going back to previous preparer who knew of the 7,500 FTHBC, people would find a new preparer and not tell them about that little item.

and btw, that's a good way to week out any IRS agents who are out "shopping", if you know what I mean.

100% agreement w/ChEAr$. One of my many new clients this year said the tax preparer who prepared their 2011 tax return died and then choas set into the small firm and they never received a copy. I told them to contact the firm again and sure enough they were able to obtain a copy and yes there was all kinds of stuff in there that related also to TP's 2012 tax return. Even the most simplist return I will request a copy of their previous years tax return for all new clients.

[RitaB]

Not hard to confuse them

I've heard that once one person is filed as 'taxpayer' and the other as 'spouse' that you should keep those designations to not confuse the IRS computers. this is just hearsay, but it makes sense to me, and I follow the practice.

Agree with Joan. I have a male client that got married, and the wife thought she would be smart and do her own return MFS. When the husband came in, I told him that was a mistake. So, I amended her return to add his information. So, she was Taxpayer and he was Spouse. The next year, I rolled over his practice MFS return (cause you have to prove that they messed up, since they are smarter than you). Anyhow, now I had him as Taxpayer and her as Spouse. Yes, there was confusion. It was a headache nobody needed. Except the wife. Grrrr.